four women along with the american civil liberties union, the aclu, sued the government over this ban. when the announcement came today they were shocked to hear the news. it is a policy change that could be life changing. >> pictures of me parachuting. >> reporter: in the eight years susan served in the u.s. air force, all but one of her dreams came true. that dream was a combat job from which women were banned. >> there are women who are extremely strong and have the ability and the skills they need to do well in this job. and to hold them back because of a stereotype is wrong. >> reporter: she now runs academy women, a support site dedicated to military women with 10,000 members. she says the ban often comes up. four women along with the national aclu and the northern california aclu chapters sued the government to overturn the ban. the announcement was a shock. >> the combat exclusion policy, one of the last vestiges of discrimination against women just because we're women. >> reporter: when the suit was filed in november, the military opened up 140,000 jobs and lifted the ban on